This is part two of a three-part series on how to be a great D&D player. We started with 5 Tips on How to be a Great D&D Player.
In this article, we’ll be highlighting pitfall “problem player” habits that gamers can make. These habits can cause big frustration around the table and send games to a crashing halt. We’ll Identify some of the top “Problem Player” types and offer some advice on how to deal with them.
What is a Problem Player?
A problem player, in short, is a disruptive player. They are usually not intentionally mean, or belligerent, or anything of this sort. They may be latching on to a version of “fun” for themselves that can really be a killjoy to the rest of the table. When you read through this list, there may be a bit of these personalities that we see in others we’ve played with and even ourselves. This is okay! Very good people can unknowingly do very disruptive things that squelch the fun of others. If you feel like you, or someone else at your table might have some “problem player” tendencies.
Our Overall Approach for Dealing with D&D Problem Players
“
In the moment when I truly understand my enemy, understand him well enough to defeat him, then in that very moment I also love him. I think it’s impossible to really understand somebody, what they want, what they believe, and not love them the way they love themselves. And then, in that very moment when I love them… I destroy them.”
― Orson Scott Card, Ender’s Game
We’ll be taking an approach at dealing with problem players by trying to really understand them and what they are getting out of their playstyle. If we can see through their eyes and understand what they are getting out of the way they are playing now, we can understand how to best resolve the problem in a sense of togetherness with them versus against them. Like most social problems with D&D, the core of a lot of the solution involves stepping out of game, and getting on the same page with the other humans at your table, as friends. This is sometimes easier said than done, we know.
D&D Problem Player Types
A Little Data on Problem Players in D&D
We did a brief survey on Facebook asking what kinds of problem players folks were most interested in discussing / getting help with. There’s a limited set of data points but the trends here are really interesting.
D&D Problem Player Type #1: The Rules Lawyer
They know the rules mechanics inside and out, and they are quick to interrupt the flow of the game to let everyone else know how what the rules say about any given scenario.
Pitfalls of having a Rules Lawyer at the table
Obsessing over rules details can really interrupt the flow of the game. Arguing with other players and / or the GM about how something “ought” to happen can send the table into a downward spiral of Googling and rulebook searching and arguments and frustration instead of immersion and collaborative storytelling. These interruptions can really be a sore spot for the other people at the table, especially if it’s an ongoing behavior. A rules lawyer might be prioritizing what is “right” to them over what is fun for all.
What is a rules lawyer getting out of their behavior?
Rules lawyers are good at understand the following concept: “fun” in D&D is not always about just giggles and novelty and levity. Fun, and fulfillment can also take the form of knowing and understanding the innerworkings of a game system and then creatively using them to solve challenging encounters. This kind of play can be stimulating and satisfying. Rules lawyers find the fun in this kind of rules mechanism exploration and solutioning. This sense of fun is a good thing. The challenge is that this kind of play can just step all over everyone else toes if they are not interested in playing the same way.
What can you do if you find yourself rules lawyering?
There
How to “Deal” with a rules lawyer as the DM?
A rules lawyer at the table can be a great asset. I love playing with players at my table who are strong in their rules knowledge because I enjoy deferring to they would recommend something play out, rules wise. I just set the precedent that my judgement calls will still be final and that we’re not going to stall out games to get the letter of the law right. We’ll follow up afterwards if needed. If you have a Rules Lawyer that is super adversarial, try chatting with them alone outside of the game session to talk through a good way or tone down or channel somewhere more productive said “fun within the rules mechanisms” experience during your games
D&D Problem Player Type #2: The Escalator
Always doing over the top disruptive things in game to make the game more… exciting? If you’ve played with an Escalator before you know who they are. They do things like this:
DM: “You walk into a tavern, there is a
quiet fire burning in the fire place… the bartender is trying to…”
Escalator: “I slap the waitress, and throw the bottle of rum into
the fireplace, exclaiming ‘It was too cold in here!’ “
Pitfalls of having an Escalator lawyer at the table
Any plot development can quickly get derailed into a slap-stick spiral of events. With an escalator (or worse, an entire party that has devolved into Escalators) before you know it your group will be headed for the brigs… again. While these bursts of randomness may seem like they make for an exciting scene in the moment, inevitably party members start feeling frustrated at the lack of story progression and the DM may feel like their prep, encounter and story building may be going down the drain.
What is an Escalator getting out of their behavior?
There’s definitely an element of fun with just, randomly seeing what you can get away with in any given scene. The escalator is looking to create exciting, edge of your seat fun. It. Kind of works… temporarily. The Escalator might be creating some excitement out of what they may find to be a boring DM style, story setting, you name it. An escalators game is: “If it feels boring, spice it up with some random, over the top antics!”
What can you do if you find yourself being an Escalator?
The desire to create some fun and excitement is a very good thing… the problem with doing it in a disruptive way is that it frankly tends to tick off the other folks around the table. It frustrates anyone who is into the current story progressing, and it will likely aggravate the DM who sees this as just clownery and distraction from the “real game” they are trying to lead you through. Channel your spunkiness in a positive direction! Talk to the DM about the kind of game you find exciting and what you find to be maybe dragging a bit in the current game. Think about doing the same with the other players. Offer up ideas. Really elaborate and dig in on the hooks that the DM may seem to be throwing your way.
How to “Deal” with an Escalator at the gaming table
As a DM, If someone is acting like an Escalator at your table, one of two things has happened. One, you and the player were on a completely different page about what kind of game you were going to be playing and the content you’re providing is just not fun and engaging for them. Or two, the player feels that the game is currently boring, or has had some “boring game PTSD” from their past and they feel like they need to stir the pot in every scenario they are in. Either way, the best approach is to just be direct, and respectful about it. Pull them aside after game and ask them what’s going on. Let them know that when they constantly escalate the situation in game it feels frustrating to you and potentially others around the table. Ask them if they have ideas to employ in this game or the next that seem awesome to them. If this conversation doesn’t go well, and the behavior continues this might be a scenario where you may need to ask one person to leave the game for the betterment of everyone else.
D&D Problem Player Type #3: The Disruptive Min-Maxer
This personality type was o
A disruptive Min-Maxer is often paired with some other chaos causing behavior. The hallmark characteristic is that a Min-Maxer creates a lopsided character that is amazing at a very narrow set of abilities, sacrificing other stats and abilities to make certain abilities way above average.
The Pitfalls of Min-Maxers
Often, players who are min-maxing are doing so because they are trying to “beat the game” ahead of time. This can take away from a game that is trying to play more RP / story heavy. One pitfall with this technique is that it can create a very “excellent hammer that now sees everything as a nail” kind of character. If your character is really great at only one thing, they may try to solve all of their scenarios with this kind of “one trick pony” approach. A character that trivializes the encounters they are in and / or has no patience for encounters that don’t leverage their one trick can really leave a game feeling flat, frustrating others. For example, Johnny creates a level 1 human variant with some kind of subclass and totem path combination that nets him a +14 to intimidate. He sees every encounter as an opportunity to “win via intimidate.” Since his dice rolls are so high it actually wins… most of the time… mechanically. And it’s the solution to every social situation.. Resulting in a kind of monotonous 1-note story in that regard.
Additionally, Min-Maxers can unintentionally overshadow other players. If the party has a single player that is leagues ahead of the others in a certain area such as combat, it can create real problems for the DM tuning encounters, and other players might feel like their combat focused player characters that did not take the time to find obscure rules to exploit pale in comparison.
What is a Min-Maxer Getting out of their behavior?
Like some of the other personalities on this list, the disruptive Min-Maxer has the seeds of awesomeness within, they are just channeling them into disruptive areas. A Min-Maxer may love churning through lots of rules and synergies within the system and its various rulebooks / subclasses etc.. And finding something incredibly synergetic. These kinds of folks love digging in and engineering something awesome that may not have been able to be found by most. The Min-Maxer may love the idea of feeling like a badass, or feeling like they outsmarted the system or game by kind of “winning” ahead of time or stacking the odds way in their favor with their awesome mechanically incredible ability scores and abilities.
What can you do if you find yourself being a Min-Maxer?
Use your character optimization powers for good! Having characters that are laser focused
How to “Deal” with a Min-Maxer in Your Game
As a DM, consider approaching with an “On the same team” perspective. Your player wants to have fun finding cool feat combinations and build concepts to exploit, and wants to have a character that feels like a badass at what they do. Unless your campaign calls for something really specific, try to channel this energy instead of squelching it. Mention any concerns you have about this “laser focused build” and any implications you feel it may have on gameplay. Be creative in how you can setup scenarios that both challenge the lack of other skill, and reward the laser focus on certain skills. Take extra consideration with spotlight management and ensure that the other players are receiving good attention on what their characters are great at as well.
As a player it’s tough to deal with a Min-M
D&D Problem Player Type #4: The Lone Wolf
D&D is a team sport. Sometimes a player kind of forgets this and tries to play in a super lone wolf style in a group setting. Consider the rogue that wants to infiltrate the keep at night while his friends sleep.
Pitfalls of The Lone Wolf
In a book, or a story that can be played asynchronously such as play by post, this can work fine. The problem is when you try to bring this lone wolf style of play into a live game, it can really sap the fun from the table. A Lone wolf can become a nightmare to manage as the DM. Splitting up what the party is doing with just one person on a quest is very difficult to manage from a spotlight management perspective. As cool as it sounds in concept, the rest of the party does not want to sit around and just be idle for 90 minutes to listen to your characters exploits.
What is a Lone Wolf Getting out of their behavior?
The best part of a lone wolf is that they really appreciate the development of a character’s story. They want to really immerse themselves in the head of a character and just go for it.
What can you do if you find yourself being a Lone Wolf?
If you’re in a live game, simply put, make team minded decisions. Channel the part of your character that wants to make decisions that take on problems in a way that’s fun for everyone involved.
How to “Deal” with a Lone Wolf in the Group
This is probably one of the easier challenging player scenarios to manage. As the DM or other player at the table, just set the standard that it just won’t work to have players going off and doing their own thing for extended periods of time. Bring up that the D&D is a team sport and decisions, and tactics should be done in a way that really brings the whole table into it. Direct the creative energies of a Lone Wolf to either a 1:1 game or a play-by-post campaign that is separate from the live session. Both of these can have awesome solo missions and adventures.
D&D Problem Player Type #5: The Spotlight Hog
Ever the center of attention, the spotlight hog is an example of there being too much of a good thing. The Spotlight Hog may always have an opinion that they are eager to assert to any NPC before anyone else, might dominate lots of attention in combat with their own focus on how awesome their characters are, and might try to take on every specialist task even when someone else might be better at it. ” ‘No, little rogue’ the fighter says. “you’re far too fragile for scouting such a dangerous place. I am trained in scouting, and I have this thick armor. Surely I’ll go instead.”
Pitfalls of the Spotlight Hog
The Spotlight Hog has all the makings of a really great player, minus one thing… good spotlight management. The best players will bring out the opinions of the rest of the party and encourage each person at the table to really shine at what they are best at. Spotlight Hogs sometimes forget that D&D is a team sport and make it a me thing.
What is the Spotlight Hog getting out of their behavior?
Spotlight Hogs love this game. They hurl their enthusiasm at it and love experiencing the ebb and flow of the game first hand.
What can you do if you find yourself being a spotlight Hog?
This one’s easy. Just share more ya big lug! If you’ve identified the problem behavior, that’s the hardest part. Just take a mental note to channel your enthusiasm in a balanced way. This includes both having your character come to life with interesting content to add to the story, yet be happy to take the step back and let others shine in what they are best at, at the table. An even better way is to channel energy at drawing out the best parts of others. If you’re always opinionated, defer to others opinions on things when it would pertain to their character, etc. If someone else specializes in something that you can also do… but they can probably do it better… let them have at it!
How to “Deal” with a Spotlight Hog in Your Game
Again, Spotlight Hogs have all the elements of great players. Instead of being unengaged, they are over engaged, overshadowing others.
As the DM, try pulling them aside and letting them know that you want to help the other players have a great time and ask for their help? Ask if they can help find ways to showcase the other players and bring out their opinions and their greatness into the foreground. Ask them if they would mind deferring to others sometimes to make that aspect of the game more interesting. If you can help the light bulb go off in their head that this kind of play will be more fun not just for others but for them as well, this may be an easy shift. Be prepared to have the simple, non-confrontational discussion more than once though, old habits might be hard to break and you may need to reflect on how a few sessions went before they totally kind of change paradigms.
Honorable Mention
There are other types of problem players that we may find in our games. Here are some of our other favorites that did not quite make the cut for this article.
- The Path Refuser (Can’t get them to follow the questline for the life of you!)
- The Murder Hobo (This is a very special, very
murdery version of The Escalator) - Says Chaotic Good but Plays Lawful Evil (Nuff’ said)
- The Steal From the
Party’er (Just don’t) - The Drama Queen (Does the world end when they don’t get their way?)
Related Articles
How to be a Great D&D Player – 5 Tips
Is Play by Post Dead?
Shout Outs
Thanks to Taylor A. whose feedback and ideas prompted this write up.